News On The Fly

Prolific hatches and topwater takes are the best of summer. This short film from Joe Cummings of Drive On Media highlights the best of the season.

When trout streams start to get too warm, the fishing for smallies often heats up.
Photo by Drew Price

The smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) goes by many nicknames—smallie, bronzeback, brownie, and brown bass, to name a few—which is a sign of its popularity in different parts of the country. It’s the most trout–like bass, in that it often lives in clean, cold rivers and feeds on insects, baitfish, and. . .

The post Fish Facts: Smallmouth Bass (Micropterus dolomieu) appeared first on Orvis News.

From Winston:

Serious rods for serious anglers for serious fish. Featuring a full spectrum of saltwater rods for every possible fishing scenario. Included in the Plus series are three extra powerful, reinforced Jungle rods designed specifically for Peacock bass and Dorado. The Plus series also includes high-performance freshwater 5wt. and 6wt. rod models. The “Plus” stands for incredible line speed, extra power and design qualities needed to handle monster flies, the wind, sinking and oversized head lines and of course, big, big, fish. Boron III Plus rods are lightweight, smooth casting and feature our new shooting guides, green reel seats and, of course, unmatched Winston quality and craftsmanship.

From RIO:

RIO Products, industry leading manufacturer of fly lines, leaders, tippet and accessories, is thrilled to release a double award-winning fly line with the LightLine. At the recent International Fly Tackle Dealers show, the LightLine won “Best New Freshwater Fly Line for 2016”, and this award was repeated at the annual Australian Fishing Trade Show two weeks later.

RIO’s LightLine has been designed to load slower, more traditional action fly rods such as bamboo, fiberglass and the more classic flexing graphite rods. Built to precisely match the industry line standards, this line will not overload such rods – even at longer range. In addition, the weight distribution and short front taper ensures the line loads at close range, making it ideal for fishing on smaller creeks and streams, while the softer, supple coating ensures the line remains relaxed and easy to handle in the majority of conditions.

Through innovative technology, Patagonia is changing the way denim is made – using environmentally friendlier dye and manufacturing processes, Fair Trade Certified sewing practices, and 100% organic, pesticide-free cotton

With its new denim collection launching today, Patagonia is changing the way denim is made and raising the bar for environmental and human rights practices – using innovative, environmentally friendlier dye, Fair Trade Certified sewing practices, and 100% organic cotton grown without pesticides, herbicides, or synthetic fertilizers.

The filthy business of conventional denim drove Patagonia to rethink the entire process. Typically, denim production involves the use of dangerous chemicals to grow conventional cotton; dying it produces millions of gallons of wastewater; and, too often, jeans are sewn in factories where workers may not be treated fairly.

From OIA:

Outdoor Industry Association® (OIA) announced its newly elected 2015-2016 board of directors today. The board also selected its officers, naming Gordon Seabury, CEO of Toad&Co, as chair. He is joined by Travis Campbell, president and CEO of Far Bank Enterprises, as vice chair and treasurer; Nora Stowell, vice president of sales at Amer Sports, as vice chair; and Catherine Walker, senior vice president & general counsel at REI, as secretary.

OIA’s board of directors provides guidance for the organization’s overall strategic direction. The board establishes policies and positions, monitors the association’s financial health, programs and overall performance and prepares the industry and association for the future, ensuring that OIA has the resources to meet the needs of its members.

In 2014, the board invested

From OIA:

Outdoor Industry Association® (OIA), Outdoor Alliance and The Conservation Alliance this afternoon presented Public Land Heist Roundtable – How State Takeover Threatens the Outdoor Industry. The 90 minute roundtable discussion, which was held in conjunction with the Outdoor Retailer Summer Market 2015 in downtown Salt Lake City, brought together political experts with conservationists, the sportsmen community, outdoor enthusiasts and business leaders from across the outdoor industry to join in opposition to state takeover of federal lands.

The discussion focused on

The dog days of July and August bring on hopper season in Vermont. . .

The post Museum Pieces: History of the Hopper appeared first on Orvis News.

The Henryville Special was originally tied to imitate caddisflies on Pennsylvania's Brodhead Creek.

The Pocono Mountains of northeastern Pennsylvania are veined with trout streams that used to be far more celebrated than they are now. It was in that region in the 1930s that local angler and tier Hiram Brobst first tied this somewhat. . .

The post Video: How to Tie the Henryville Special appeared first on Orvis News.

Written by: Mike Mazzoni

Mike Mazzoni shows off the spectacular dorsal fin of a Utah grayling.
All photos by Mike Mazzoni

Once again, I find myself enjoying a sort of fly-fishing novelty: targeting arctic grayling, like chasing carp, is often overshadowed by eastern Utah’s superb trout fisheries. Grayling have a special place in my fly fishing memories; while working in Colorado four years ago, I landed an arctic grayling, a rare catch in a fishery known mostly for its. . .

The post Photos of the Day: Chasing Arctic Grayling and Native Cutthroats in the Utah High Country appeared first on Orvis News.

Project Healing Waters and Orvis teamed up for a fly tying marathon at Port City brewing Company in Alexandria, VA. For those of you who are not familiar with. . .

The post Video: Fly Tying Marathon with Project Healing Waters appeared first on Orvis News.

A recent study and report from the Roaring Fork Conservancy and Colorado State University highlights the importance of fly fishing in communities surrounding the Fryingpan River.

Read more in the press release below.

The Bonefish & Tarpon Trust has announced new members to their Board of Directors. They include: Bill Andersen from The Andersen Firm, Dave Perkins from The Orvis Company, and Stephen C. Reynolds from Baptist Memorial Health Care Corporation.

Read more in the press release below.

The Laxardalur beat on the Laxa River is probably the best beat for good sized browns in the whole country.
All photos courtesy Icelandic Fly Fishermen

Ingo Helgason of Icelandic Fly Fishermen sent me these beautiful photos from the past few months, along with a note: . . .

The post Classic Photo Essay: Amazing Brown Trout and Salmon Fishing in Iceland appeared first on Orvis News.

In some watersheds, scuds make up a large part of a trout's diet.

Scuds, crustaceans known as Amphipods, are on a trout's menu year-round—especially in many tailwaters, spring creeks, and stillwaters. Trout love them because scuds are usually plentiful, easy to catch, and they have high nutritional value. There are almost. . .

The post Video: How to Tie a Simple Scud Pattern appeared first on Orvis News.

This beautiful short trailer is not your normal dose of daily "hero shots". It is a refreshing change, and a peaceful 3 minutes immersed into the unique landscape of the Irish . . .

The post Video: A Life Defined By The River appeared first on Orvis News.

This film trailer celebrates the quest of catching four species of cutthroat trout. The full film is now touring with the International Fly Fishing Film Festival (IF4). Via Blue Halo.

From OIA & Outdoor Retailer:

Outdoor Industry Association® (OIA) and Outdoor Retailer (OR) have announced the 30 outdoor brands whose products will be featured in the third Made in America Product Showcase at OR Summer Market, August 5-8, 2015. The exhibit will be located on the upper concourse near the east entrance to the Salt Palace Convention Center.  It will feature educational information about U.S. sourcing and manufacturing, as well as information about participating companies and their products.

The outdoor industry continues to evolve and diversify in an increasingly global economy. This evolution is represented in “Made in the U.S.A.” outdoor products. The showcase features some of the great apparel, footwear and gear being created in communities across the United States and is designed to educate retailers, exhibitors and all show attendees about the benefits of and progress in U.S. manufacturing.

The participating companies are:

From Korkers:

What’s in a name? Well this name speaks the truth. Stalk fish or waterfowl in ultra-stealth mode with the new Ambush crossover wading boot. Korkers teamedup with Mossy Oak to build the first premium camo stockingfoot wading boot. Designed with one of Mossy Oak’s best-selling patterns, Break-Up Infinity, The Ambush provides sportsmen of all kind a premium wading boot designed to perform in all conditions.

From Roaring Fork Conservancy:

Roaring Fork Conservancy partnered with Colorado State University to better understand the role angling in the Lower Fryingpan River and Ruedi Reservoir play in the local economy. Fishing in Colorado provides unique recreational opportunities and generates economic activity through the purchase of gear and clothing, guide services, and other recreation-related expenditures such as travel, food, and lodging. Fishing also generates economic activity beyond these direct expenditures because they create spin-off purchases. This study analyzed the direct and spin-off economic activity created from recreational fishing on the Lower Fryingpan River and Ruedi Reservoir. Data was obtained by surveying anglers both on Ruedi Reservoir and Lower Fryingpan River during 2014.

The study revealed the following results:

Here is some awesome cutthroat action coming from the talented guys over at Bloodknots. As always, they put together an entertaining edit with great camera work, big fish. . .

The post Video: Salad Days Featuring Big Cutthroat appeared first on Orvis News.